Five NFL rule changes approved after league owners meeting

Following a meeting of the NFL owners, they have voted on five rule changes while also voting against three proposals and tabling five others until next year.

There has been a significant amount of debate over various areas of the league in the build-up to the rule changes, with some suggestions made that they could effect the “fun element” of the NFL.

Considering the success the league has enjoyed over a number of years, many experts felt as though little needed to be done as the current format and various rules were accepted by the players and enjoyed by the fans.

Nevertheless, some have improved the overall functioning of games, with higher levels of consultation and changes to the game clock in the event of a sack being implemented.

Here is a full list of the proposals made on Tuesday, and those which have either been passed, failed or tabled, courtesy of Pro Football Talk.

Rule change proposals:

1. Move the kickoff to the 40-yard line. FAILED

2. Expand instant replay to include personal foul penalties. FAILED

3. Eliminate overtime in the preseason. TABLED

4. Extend the uprights to make them five feet taller. PASSED

5. Move the line of scrimmage for one-point extra point kicks to the defensive team’s 25-yard line. Two-point conversion attempts would still be snapped from the 2-yard line. TABLED. (League will experiment with longer extra points in the preseason.)

8. Protect players from getting the sides of their legs rolled up on — the rule already says a blocker can’t hit an opponent in the back of the legs, this proposal will add “or side” to the rule. PASSED

9. Allow the referee to consult with members of the NFL officiating department during replay reviews. The referee would be able to speak with the command center in New York to help in reviewing a play. PASSED

10. Re-organize the rules about what can be reviewed and what cannot be reviewed, including making the recovery of a loose ball in the field of play reviewable. (This is referred to as the NaVorro Bowman rule, after a controversial call in the NFC Championship Game.) PASSED

11. Don’t stop the clock on a sack. PASSED

12. Modify pass interference so that it can be called within one yard of the line of scrimmage. TABLED

13. Enforce defensive fouls behind the line of scrimmage from the previous spot, rather than from the end of the run or from the spot of the foul. PASSED